CWA to conduct house to house canvassing

by P.Krishnaswamy

Ceylon Workers' Alliance (CWA), the trade-union-based political party of the plantations led by Uva Provincil Council member and former parliamentarian T. V. Chennan who had decided to support UPFA presidential candidate PM Mahinda Rajapakse in the upcoming presidential poll held a special meeting in Nuwara Elia yesterday for deliberations on propaganda campaigns to be staged in the plantation areas throughout the country.

The meeting was attended by party frontliners and leaders of estate-level committees, according to reports.

General Secretary of the party former MP S. Sathasivam told the 'Daily News' that they had decided at the meeting to conduct house to house canvassing in the plantations throughout the island explaining to the workers the multifarious benefits they had derived in the past under the reign of the SLFP and its leftist coalition parties.

History bears witness to the fact that all siginificant legislations on the economic, social, political as well as industrial welfare of the plantation community were introduced during the administration of the SLFP and its allies, Sathasivam said.

Citing examples, Sathasivam said that the EPF scheme and other schemes for their super annuation benefits and the Labour Tribunals for settling their industrial disputes were introduced.

In fact the first proposal on constructing independent housing units for them was tabled by Dr.Colvin R de Silva when he was Minister under the UF government in the 60s. When the Janatha Estates Development Board (JEDB) was established in 1974 and the plantations were vested on it, the workers enjoyed many benefits which were denied to them previously, he said.

Educational and health services to the plantation people improved considerably after estate schools and hospitals were taken over by the government in 1994, he said.

A separate Ministry, the Estate Infrastructure Ministry, for the welfare of the estate workers was established by the PA government led by President Chandrika Bandaranaike Kumaratunga and the ministry was entrusted to their TU leaders.

Grama Niladharis and Samurdhi animators from among the plantation youths were appointed as well as teaching appointments were given only during the reign of President Chandrika Banadaranaike Kumaratunga, said, adding that it was she who enacted legislation to pay compensation to the victims of the '83 communal violence.